Vision Unexpected
by RoseShield
Summary: Bella moves to Forks, but Edward makes a different choice, he goes to Alaska. Bella falls in love with a different Cullen... AxB Collab.
1. Chapter 1

**BPOV:**

I got out of the truck that Charlie had given me

I got out of the truck that Charlie had given me. I was surprised that it ran so well. I was expecting it to break down at least once on the way to school, but it did surprisingly well. I found myself almost proud of the car, which was funny because I had never been much of a car lover.

I didn't bother to lock it as I walked towards the school office. I doubted anyone would steal it because it was so old. Looking around the parking lot I noticed that many of the cars were out of date and beaten. I felt slightly better knowing that I wasn't the only person at the school who couldn't afford anything fancy. At my old school everything was about money and status. That was one good thing about coming to Forks. It was small and remote.

I noticed only one new car in the entire parking lot. It was a shiny Volvo. It stood out of place next to all of the other cars.

I tripped while not paying attention to where I was going. I quickly took my eyes off the silver car and looked back at my feet. I could feel a few stares and felt uncomfortable. I felt my face redden.

I swung the door open to the office building. That was another thing different about Forks, the schools were split into separate buildings on a campus rather than having one big school building. Charlie explained it to me before I left this morning. I was grateful because it was slightly confusing.

"Good morning!" I jumped at the sound.

"Oh…" I stepped forward to the desk were a woman was sitting. "I'm new…"

"I know you are!" She smiled widely. "You're Isabella Swann aren't you? Chief Swann told us you would be arriving. I have your schedule right here and a map."

She handed me some papers and I suffered through a bit of small talk with her. It was clear that my arrival was the new 'big thing' that the town was talking of. When I finally managed to get away I had only a few minutes before class. I felt anxious because I was going to be late.

"Are you Isabella?" I turned at the sound of a voice.

"Bella." I corrected automatically.

"Bella, then." He smiled. "I'm Eric. Do you need help finding your class?"

Glancing at Eric, I could tell he was the sweet chess club type. Nice, but undeniably nerdy.

I let him talk as we went to my first class. I felt peoples gazes on me and I looked at my feet. As we entered the class, Eric gave me a smile and sat down in his seat. I took a deep breath and walked up to the teacher. I told him I was new and luckily he didn't make me talk about myself in front of the class. I took a seat at the back and didn't say a word.

When it was time for dismissal, Eric got up to talk to me, but another boy beat him too it.

I was surprised, because no one had ever wanted to talk to me at my old high school and now two guys were trying to get my attention.

"My name is Mike." He smiled.

"Bella." I smiled back. He was slightly easier to talk to than Eric because he was more normal and approachable.

"I know." He smiled wider. "I'm pretty sure that everyone knows who you are. It's a small town."

"I noticed." I frowned. "I've only been here for a day and it seems that everyone knows me."

"I know. It's a small town curse. Everyone knows everything about everyone."

"That's' kind of creepy, you know." I pointed out.

"I hate it." He laughed. "I can't wait to get out of here."

"Forks..." I muttered.

"Yeah," He nodded. "So why did you come here? I mean, you were living it big in Arizona. Phoenix. Why'd you decided to move to middle-of-nowhere-Forks?"

"My mom was getting married." I frowned.

"Oh…that sucks." Mike gave me a sympathetic look. "Was the guy a loser?"

"No, no." I shook my head. "He's really nice actually. It's just….I didn't want to get in the way…he travels a lot…."

"What class do you have next?" Mike leaned over me to look at my schedule.

"Government….I think…"

"Cool!" He looked excited. "We're in the same class!"

"Hey, Mike…who's this?" A girl with curly hair came over smiling fakely.

"Bella." Mike smile lessened. "Jessica, this is Bella. Bella…Jessica."

"So you're Chief Swann's daughter?" Jessica looked me over.

"Yes…"

Jessica launched into a babble of talk which left me to say very little. I just nodded and occasionally made remarks on what she said. I felt more comfortable letting her do all the talking.

For the next three classes, Jessica and Mike stuck next to my side like they were glued there. Mike wouldn't let me alone for a minute and Jessica followed Mike as if he was the only person on earth. Occasionally a few more people would stop to introduce themselves. After a while I lost track of who was who.

When it was time for lunch, I sat down at a table with Jessica and Mike. I glanced around the cafeteria. Every single table was full except for one which had only five people sitting at it.

"Who are they?" I asked Jessica.

"Oh them?" She sighed. "They're the Cullens. They don't like to mingle with other people."

"Why?" I asked curious.

"They prefer to stick to their own family." Jessica frowned. "Very stuck up they are."

I stared at them. They were so interesting in comparison to the rest of Forks.

"There's Rosalie and Jasper Hale, they're twins. And there's Emmett. They are all a grade above us. And then there is Alice and Edward Cullen, in our grade."

"Whos' who?" I asked confused.

"Rosalie is the blonde. Emmett is bigger. Jasper is blond…he's sitting next to Alice, the short one with black hair. Oh…and Edward has red hair."

"I see…" I said softly.

"Oh, and you know what?" Jessica leaned in. "The rumor is that Emmett and Rosalie are a thing."

"But aren't they like…adopted and not related?" Mike asked.

"Still…" Jessica raised her eyebrows.

"Well, I got to get to class." Mike stood up. "Come on Bella. You have Bio with me."

"I have French." Jessica waved. "See you later.

I exited the cafeteria with Mike and we went to the Bio room. When I got there, there was only one open seat next to Edward Cullen. I felt nervous but walked towards the seat. I tripped on the way to my desk and I blushed. Edward stiffened and then quickly walked over to the teachers desk. He mumbled something quickly that I didn't catch. It sounded as if he was trying not to breathe.

He left the room quickly and then class began. Mike raised his hand and asked if he could sit next to me for the class. The teacher agreed to my surprise, and Mike moved his stuff next to mine.

We passed notes to each other for the whole class. I had never actually passed notes with anyone at my old school because I never had anyone to pass notes too. Suddenly I was popular and people wanted to be by me. It was very strange and I felt as if I were in some alternate universe.

When class ended Mike grabbed my things for me. I protested but he wouldn't let me.

On the way to my next class, Mike gave me my things and went to his class. It was the first class we didn't have together today.

When I finished my next class I realized that there wasn't much left of the day. Feeling excited, I walked more quickly. Suddenly, I felt myself tripping and I saw my things fall. I put my arms out bracing myself for the fall but then felt myself being caught. I looked to see who had saved me.

I blinked confused. The short Cullen girl had caught me. I tried to remember her name.

"Sorry." I stood up and gathered my books. When I had gotten all of my things together again she was still standing there with a strange blank expression.

"Um…thanks…."

She shook her head and her eyes suddenly seemed more focused. "It's nothing. Don't thank me. Be more careful."

"Sorry." I blushed. For some reason I felt intimidated by her. She was so different. I didn't know what to do.

She walked away and things seemed to go back to normal. I remembered suddenly that I had forgot to ask her for her name. I would have to ask Jessica tomorrow to remind me.

I went to my next class and sat next to Eric. For the entirety of my last class he asked me questions about myself. I felt very uncomfortable and when the class ended I rushed out.

I felt exhausted. Meeting so many people was tiring. I went to my car and turned it on. I backed out rather quickly and heard brakes making a loud noise. I stopped immediately and saw that I had almost hit the silver Volvo.

I mouthed 'sorry' and the blonde girl driving the car gave me a frustrated look. The two guys in the car laughed and the small girl looked away. I noticed that the fifth one was gone and briefly thought about how weird that was.

When I got home I grabbed an apple on my way upstairs to email my mother.

I briefly told her of my day at Forks and then I turned off the computer and put on a CD. I closed my eyes and laid back on my new bed. Thank god the day was over.

**APOV:**

Edward pulled up to the school and sighed silently to myself; Jasper and I had gotten into another row this morning. It seemed all that we did was yell at each other of late, I was never good enough for him, he was never good enough for me, bullshit. The result of this argument had left us tense and the rest of the family feeling awkward, all but Edward of course. He was probably tuning into my thoughts right now as I think. He probably even knows of my vision with Jasper, the one where he ends "us". It should happen soon...

It took me a while to come to terms with this fact. I was so in love with Jasper I couldn't imagine it happening... But things just went downhill from that day of the vision. Its probably better this way. Edward put a comforting hand on my shoulder at that thought, which I shrugged off angrily. I didn't need his pity.

"Alice," Jasper said as we unloaded ourselves from the Volvo. " Could I talk to you for a minute?" There it was, exactly as I had seen it in my vision. I put a resigned attitude to myself and followed Jasper to the back of the car, shooing away the rest of our family; I didn't want them to be here for this. "Look..." he began.

I stopped him there. " I already know what you are going to say Jasper." He look almost relived at hearing me say that, which I refused to let bother me. It was better this way.

"I'm sorry" he said giving me a hug. " I wish there was another way."

"I know." Replied the cold as rock me. "Its better this way, I know it is." I sounded like I was trying to convince myself, geez. So much for being strong and bold. Jasper didn't even try to sooth my pain, I knew he wouldn't though, it wouldn't have been fair honestly. To feel like everything's alright and everything will work out somehow while he was there and then suddenly as he leaves to let the emotions fly out the window and be bitter and resentful. No, Jasper wouldn't do that.  
"Please.. If theres anything that I can do.." Jasper said as guilt began to paint his features.  
No. There was nothing he could do. The bright young girl in me answered: " Don't you worry about a thing Jasper, I've gotten over boys like you in a flash, I'm just toooo attractive to be held down for too long." The vampire who had once been my love smiled as if knowing this fact all too well. "Get to class now Jasper, the rest of them will be waiting for you." I wanted to be alone for a while, just to think. Jasper understood that fact it seemed as he nodded and trotted off towards the building. As soon as he entered our school I let myself feel again. Emotion washed over me like waves in a vicious sea, trying to force me to drop to my knees and drown in the waters. I wouldn't let it, not here, not now in front of all of these humans. Running, running was my release, I sprinted from the parking lot, the mere humans eyes not even picking up a blur of motion as I ran. I didn't even know where i was going, I just need to run, to get Jasper out of my eyes, out of my mind.

I would have to be careful from here on out, Jasper was just one of those people you had to be cautious with, careful not to feel too much. He had a special talent, the talent to control peoples emotions and manipulate them as he saw fit. But there also seemed to be a curse to this blessing, his emotions themselves were very susceptible to changing due to the strength of those around him. If i let my self want him or need him he in turn would respond. Now that wasn't a bad idea... to make him love me... but no. These emotions were not real, they couldn't produce anything real... It would be cruel.  
I sincerely doubted having to shield my feelings from him would be that big of a problem though. I had known about the break up months in advance, it gave me plenty of time to come to terms with it. Sure it was sad right now, but I would soon be back to my old chipper self. I just needed a little time to grieve. Letting the rhythmic pumping of my legs take over my thoughts I ran on, basking in the emptiness it gave me.

Eventually I slowed to a stop, my mind finally feeling calm and cool. Everything would be alright, no more yelling this way. I looked at my watch and was surprised to find that i had been running through the school day, it was about half way to lunch at this hour. Shaking my head I looked at my feet, and gave a sad sigh. Those were new heels, and i already broke them, they had looked so nice too, just perfect with this outfit. Whatever, I could easily stop by the house on my way back and pick out some new shoes. Maybe even a new outfit... with a low neckline and a deep ruby red hue... The thoughts continued to amass in my mind as I ran back the way I came. Time seemed to be a fickle one today as by the time I had ran home, changed clothes into something far more tempting and out there ( hey, who says I cant look hotter than hot?) and gotten back to school I had made it back earlier than I had hoped to, one whole class period before lunch.

I ignored all the jealous glares from the girls and the appraising ones from the boys, it was so normal to me I would have been worried had they not stared. Rosalie had it the worst of all of us though, not to say she didn't enjoy it. Rosalie loved the attention no doubt, and flaunted her gorgeous good looks whenever she could. It was a wonder Emmett never got into any jealous rages the way that she handled herself. Then again Emmett wasn't really one to talk either...

Doodling all over my supposed "notes" from this class I tuned out the world and focused only on the paper in front of me. It was so strange how a simple pen and paper could be used as a medium for your mind to flow. I began to see a few faces in my incoherent scribbles, perhaps a bit of the future rubbing off on me. I began to see thin dark hair and pale skin, skin as pale as one of my own kinds, and innocent yet tired eyes. The new girl. No that wasn't the future rubbing off, that was the latest buzz of gossip from the students. New girl new girl new girl, what was the big deal? This being a small town is what most likely made her the equivalent to a celebrity. Another face appeared in my scribbles. This time it was a dancer from one of my favorite shows, Dancing with the Stars. The man had such grace it was nearly frightening, and for not the first time I cursed his dance partner, envious that she wasn't me. I could dance so much better than she could any day, and she tripped on her feet nearly every step. I laughed at how frivolous my thoughts could be at times, gossip and television, really I ought to be a bit more intellectual. Now a third face came out of my doodles, with a light mane of hair and soft features. Jasper. I crossed out his face quickly, I shouldn't be thinking about him, not in school and not anymore. Its not healthy.

The bell rung and the sound of chairs scraping across floors and students talking suddenly broke through the mental shield around my ears. Lunch time at last! Why I look forward to this part of the day I don't even know, perhaps its just the remnants of some human instinct.

I deftly navigated my way through the flood of hungry students to the cafeteria, managing to get to the front of the lunch line before anyone else. Scanning the potential food to take i chose an apple, a cheese burger and some milk, the typical student lunch. Unfortunately none of this food was really going to be eaten, much to the lunch lady's dismay. I didn't feel the need to put up such a pretentious act today.

As I slid into a chair at "our table" Jasper gave me a warm smile, which I returned gladly. Maybe this wasn't going to be so bad after all. Edward once again patted my shoulder, which utterly ruined the good moment that had just passed. Thanks buddy. Edward just scowled and shrugged, not happy that his apparent acts of kindness were unappreciated.

"So whats the deal with this new girl?", I asked nonchalantly.

" Don't really know, don't really care." Rosalie answered bitterly. She was probably just jealous that the newb has gotten all of the attention.

" So whats the word, is she afraid of us yet?", giant Emmett asked as the new girl glanced over at our table. He looked to Edward, who usually was king of that department. Edward gazed over to the girl and concentrated. Suddenly he looked shocked and at the same time frustrated. He now showed obvious signs of concentration, eyes squinted and hands flexed. Finally he turned back to the table and shrugged. Emmett didn't react, he didn't really care enough to pursue it apparently. But I was facsinated, someone who Edward seemingly couldn't get a read on. I stared at the girl unashamedly, hoping to have her glance my way. But alas no, the bell rang and the tide of students now rushed to their classes, strange girl included.

I breezed through the rest of my classes, not concentrating in the slightest. I was too curious about this girl, how did she shield her mind from Edward? Was it conscious or subconscious? Was she even really human? I shook myself at that thought, of course she was human. Abruptly i searched for Edward with my minds eye. Alaska, hmm. Something must have happened to tempt him again. Another bell rang interrupting my thoughts, two classes left to the day and I was home free.  
The humans where rushing through the hallways once more, they were so amusing to watch sometimes, when I spotted the new girl. She was walking at a slow pace, but suddenly speed up. Unconsciously I chose to follow her, perhaps hoping to get a clue as to why her thoughts are shielded but no one else's are. The girl gasped and tripped out of the blue while I was following her. Instinctively I reached out and caught her, now thats curious, why would I save a human from a mere fall? The vision hit me like a icy cold sheet of water. Straight brown hair, deep brown eyes and pallid skin, an absolutely enticing scent. Soft, so soft was the body that I held so close to mine, and those lips, those slightly pouting lips made me dizzy. I leaned in- the vision ended.

"Um…thanks….", the new girl said awkwardly.

I realised she had been talking to me. I shook my head and focused in on her voice, heeding the warning from the vision about her delicious scent and cutting off my breathing."It's nothing. Don't thank me. Be more careful.", I said stiffly.

"Sorry." , The girl said. She looked a bit frightened, but I waved it off for now. I had better get out of here... what the hell was THAT vision all about? I walked briskly away trying not to think of the shocking images that had raced through my minds eye.

I don't even know how I made it through the rest of the school day without thinking about it, but i did. At last the final bell rung and I raced to the car, eager to get home and ponder everything that had happened this day. I got to the car and jumped into the front seat, bouncing in my chair impatiently. After an eternaty Rosalie finally got into the car-Edward was gone of course so he drove. As we pulled out of the parking spot we nearly ran into a huge red truck. I looked towards the driving seat,almost afraid of who it might be. Low and behold it was the girl. Our eyes met as she mouthed sorry and I glanced away hurriedly, this was all just too much! Rosalie drove out like a madwoman and got us home without another incident.

I rushed past Esme and Charisle when i came into the house, running to my room to flop onto my bed. Jasper breaking up with me, Edward suddenly going to Alaska, and now this strange girl! So much had happened today, too much to comprehend... I needed to clear my mind, it was all too much. I blasted some of my favorite music, Breaking Benjamin and tried to let the lyrics and screams take over my mind.

* * *

**A/N**

Cahira: We are the authors of this piece of work here (gestures in vague direction of fanfiction) I'm author numero dos and i write for Alice. I'm super new to fanfiction and rarely write it at all actually, but i do read tons of it XD Anyways so i hope you like our work, and constructive criticism is very much appreciated!

(tosses keyboard to Laura)

Laura: Thank you for the keyboard! I am not exactly new to fanfiction. I have an account as BellaJacoblove. (Which strangely enough has only one Jacob story on it. The rest are all about other Characters from Twilight) Um... I write the Bella parts. I generally write the parts first because I write quickly with the only goal to produce much writing, whereas my lovely friend writes far more slowly but with far more detail and quality and stuff. So... yes!

Oh and I also write Leah parts of the story later on. But that doesn't happen until chapter five or so...

Cahira: (cuffs lightly) spoilers my dear, shame! Tsk, and you've been here longer than i have.


	2. Chapter 2

**BPOV**

The next day, I woke up and panicked. For a minute I couldn't remember why I was at Charlie's house. Blinking, the room came into focus and things returned to normal. I had come here for Renee. Forks was something I was willing to go through for her happiness. I couldn't go back after reading her email about how happy she was. I could tell by the amount of exclamation marks that she was beaming. Phil made her radiate and glow. In a way I slightly envied her for having someone, but all I really wanted was for her to be happy.

As I went downstairs for breakfast I saw Charlie reading a newspaper.

"Hey." I poured myself a bowl of cereal.

"Hey." He nodded towards me not lifting his eyes.

We both ate in silence and if was comforting. Me and Charlie were much alike. We were both quiet and preferred silence. I felt very comfortable not speaking.

When I got into the truck, it took a while to start up. I mentally made a note that I would need to drive it over to Billy's house to see if he knew how to fix it. While I drove to school I turned on the radio. It had poor reception but I could still hear the music. I switched it to classical music. For some reason I felt in the mood for something quiet.

"Bella!" I heard someone call my name as I pulled into the parking lot. I looked to see Mike waving at me brightly. I couldn't help but smile back.

He walked over to my car as I was pulling up into a parking spot. "You like classical music?" He asked nodding to my radio.

I blushed even though it wasn't something to be embarrassed of. "Kind of. I mean, I will listen to it if it is on….no other signal could get through." I lied.

Mike laughed. "My mom listens to that kind of stuff. I don't mind it or anything, but I prefer rap."

"Rap!?" I made a face. "That is the only think I can not stand. I can't understand any of it. It's just swear words."

"No it's not." Mike laughed and on the way to class we debated the quality of rap music. For the entire time I felt pretty comfortable talking. Maybe Forks wouldn't be so bad.

I slipped into the class and a few people smiled or waved at me. If this was what it felt like to be popular, I could understand why there were so many people who strived to get this attention. I smiled back feeling happy and confused. Why would so many people like me now? Was it simply because I was new? I had never been something special or pretty.

On the way to lunch Jessica took me aside. "Bella, what are you doing Saturday?"

"Um….I dunno." I blinked. "I'll probably sit at home and read a book or something. Maybe homework."

"Okay, that's it." She sighed exasperated. I wondered if I had said the wrong answer. "You are coming over to my house. You, me, Lauren, Angela and a few other people. We will have a party. Bring a movie or something."

"A movie?" I said surprised.

"Yeah, you have one right?" She looked at me despairingly.

"How about Romeo and Juliet?" I named the only DVD that I brought from Phoenix.

"Oh my god, no." Jessica made a face. "Not Shakespeare. We had to read him during lit last year. It was hell on earth. That guy makes no sense at all."

"Oh," I said softly. "I like him."

"Um, okay." Jessica continued. "So, this weekend you are so gonna have to come to my house. We'll have a sleep over. It will be fun."

"I'll ask Charlie." I nodded. "I think it will be okay."

"You have to come! You just have to!" Jessica smiled. "I mean, how lame would it be to sit at home alone on Saturday night watching some weird Shakespeare movie? You really have to come to my place. We will have pizza and salads, and we can watch a chick flick…it will be fun!"

"Okay," I smiled and let Jessica explain in great detail everything that was going to go down over the weekend. Listening to her talk made me feel anxious and nervous. The last time I was invited to a sleepover was when I was ten. I remember I got sick because I ate too much sweets and then I fell asleep before midnight. When I woke up everyone made fun of me for crashing early and then they laughed about my sleep talking.

As we entered the lunch room, I glanced immediately towards the Cullen's table. One of them was missing; there were only four.

"What is that one girl's name again?" I asked Jessica. "The dark haired one."

"Alice." Jessica whispered. "I think that she is going out with the blonde guy."

I looked at them. Alice seemed very thoughtful and upset. The blonde guy looked slightly concerned about her but other than that I didn't think they looked like they were together. Alice seemed to be very careful to not touch him. Suddenly Alice smiled widely and laughed. I wondered why.

"Come on, Bella." Mike pulled on my arm slightly. "Sit by me."

I sat down and ate my lunch.

"What are you doing Saturday, Bella?" Mike asked me abruptly.

"Um…I dunn-ow!" I felt Jessica kick my shins. "Oh yeah, I'm going to Jessica's house."

"Oh…that's cool." Mike smiled. "Some other time then."

"Yeah," I smiled back and noticed Jessica glaring at me. I wondered why she had so quickly gone from being my friend to glaring me down. I briefly pondered on the thought of her having a crush on Mike, but as I looked between them they seemed to only be friends. I watched Lauren whisper something to Jessica and then looked away.

I quickly threw away my food and walked out of the lunch room to my next class. I was ten minutes early but I didn't care. I pulled out a book and sat down to read. I was only a few pages further when I felt someone's hands on my back. I jumped scared and my heart raced. Coving my hear with my hand, I looked back and saw Mike silently laughing.

"You're expressions are so funny." He laughed.

"That wasn't amusing." I closed my book quickly and snapped at him. He had scared me. That wasn't fair.

"It so was." He chuckled. "You know it was."

I turned back and opened my book. Before I could read it he took it out of my hands and held in high in the air.

"Hey!"

"I'll give it back once you tell me something." He smiled.

"Fine," I crossed my arms.

"Why'd you leave the lunch room so quickly?" Mike looked worried and the smiled vanished from his face.

"I dunno," I sighed. "Something just felt wrong, you know?"

"Wrong?" Mike steeped towards me. "What was wrong? Was it me?"

"No, no." I shook my head quickly. "Not you, just like…the general feeling."

"General feeling?"

"Yeah, I just kind of felt like I was intruding on everything." I sighed. "I mean, you guys have known each other since kindergarten practically. I'm not in on things and I dunno…I suppose…"

"Can I tell you something?" Mike handed me my book. "I didn't always live here. I moved here in eight grade."

"But you are so popular?!" I was surprised. "I thought you always lived here."

"You're pretty popular too," He leaned in and I suddenly felt very uncomfortable. I backed away slightly.

Luckily, the door opened at that very instant and Jessica walked in.

"There you are Mike." She looked at me. "Bella."

"Jessica," Mike looked frustrated.

"I'll let you to be alone." Clutching my book tightly I left the classroom.

For the remaining lunch period I wondered if Jessica was jealous of me. I thought that was ridiculous because she was so much more pretty than me and more popular. I wondered if in a week or so, my new girl status would die down and Mike would leave me alone. Perhaps then Jessica would be more comfortable with having me around. I would be more than willing to let them go out if that was what it took. Mike was a good friend, but I didn't think that we would ever be anything more.

The rest of the school day was a blur. Classes ended before I knew they had even begun. I didn't pay attention to any of the lectures and daydreamed through each class.

When school was over I walked in a daze.

Thinking that I heard my name I looked back over my shoulder as I walked. I glanced around but saw no one that I knew. While I was walking slightly backwards I knocked into something and nearly fell over.

"I told you to be careful." I turned to see Alice Cullen.

"Sorry." I apologized. "Really, I am. I should have been watching where I was going…"

"That would be a smart idea." She sighed and picked up my books. "You probably should pay extra attention to walking since you seem to fall over a lot and bump into people."

I blushed and Alice looked like she stopped breathing.

"Are you okay?" I asked. "I didn't hurt you, did I?"

Alice looked amused. "No."

"I'm really sorry." I took my books from her. "Can I do anything?"

"Pay more attention to where you're going."

"I will," I nodded. "I swear."

"Good."

There was an awkward silence as she handed me a few pencils. I thanked her and then the silence resumed. I bit my lip lightly.

"Um, do you want to hang out with me someday?" I blurted out surprising myself. What was I thinking? I didn't even know her! The only times I'd spoken to her was after I had just bumped into her. There was no way that she would want to hang out with me.

I quickly walked past her not waiting for her answer. Why had I just asked that? I couldn't understand. I was fine and then I felt a wave of something. A wave of stupidity probably.

I felt my cheeks turn from red to redder.

"Wait!" I heard her call.

I kept going. How embarrassing. What was I thinking?! It was probably all of this popularity that had gotten to my head. There was no way that she of all people would ever talk to me normally. She was a Cullen. They were only supposed to stay to themselves. They never spoke to anyone else according to Jessica.

She called out my name. I felt her cold hand on my shoulder and I nearly tripped of surprise. I was shocked that she could have caught up to me.

"Listen," Alice smiled.

"I'm sorry." I blushed further. "I didn't mean to…"

"I have some clothes that would look really good on you." She held me still with a very firm grip for a girl so petite. "Can you come over to my house Saturday morning?"

"Wait…" I said surprised. "You…me….um...clothes?"

"Saturday then?"

"I don't look good in clothes." I said. "I mean, no! I didn't mean it like that. I meant….that…clothes don't look good on me….but I look better with clothes that without, I think….oh!" I covered my flaming cheeks.

Alice laughed. "No, you do look good in clothes, you just need to wear better colors. Gray makes you seem washed out. It doesn't compliment your skin. You should wear browns and blues."

"Um…"

"Come to my house." She smiled. "I'll help teach you."

"I don't know where you live."

"I'll pick you up then." She walked backwards while still talking to me. She had much more skill at walking backwards than I. She didn't trip. In fact, she looked graceful.

"Um…okay." I muttered. She probably couldn't hear me.

"See you tomorrow." She called and then walked over to her sibling waiting at the car.

I watched her get in the car and talk to her brothers and sister.

"What was that about!?" Jessica asked me.

"I have no idea." I blinked.

Jessica frowned and I thought that again I said the wrong thing.

**APOV**

_School... School school school school school. This is all so boring. _I thought to myself. _How many years have I gone over this material? Whatever, I suppose this just gives me more time to think about everything, its not like I actually have to study for these inane tests._ Suppressing a yawn I let myself drift away from this classroom, away from the deep droning of the history teacher. That girl... That strange girl... Seemingly she was the cause of Edwards disappearance, her delicious scent pushing him to the breaking point. And that vision, what the hell happened with that vision? I've never...I'm not a... these things didn't just happen like that... do they? In all my 107 years of living (if you can call it that) never has anything like...like THAT, ever happened. Perhaps I misinterpreted it...Perhaps I just gave into temptation and thrived off the sweet blood within her veins...No. I definitely did not misread it. I definitely kissed the new girl, Bella Swan.

This fact shocked me to my senses, causing me to give a little jump and have the students stare at me. I had seen it, known it, but I didn't ever quite say it to myself. I am going to kiss a girl some time in the future...It was a startling thing to know.

_Oh what are you so bewildered about girl,_ I berated myself. _This is the twenty first century, people are much more accepting of it now than they were in the past, whats the big deal? _I didn't have a problem with it, that was a silly idea. I've known plenty of other people who swung that way, never had a problem with it before. Why should I have a problem with it now? Oh god what would the rest of my family think? What would Esme and Carisle think? How... how could I even BEGIN to talk to them about something like this?

_What do you mean something like this? Its nothing, so you're gonna fall for a girl, whats the big deal? Its not really anything different than falling for anyone else... _Are you kidding me? Of course its different, we are both girls! Its not meant to be like-

_Oh ho ho caught you there. So you do have a bit of an issue with it huh? Well then why not just try to prevent it from happening if you are so "opposed" to it._ It wasn't just a picture though, it was motion, we were moving, I could actually FEEL what was going on... Thats a pretty definite future...

_Yeah well so was you and Jasper breaking up but you didn't try to stop that now did you. Have you ever tried? How would you really know. _Well no I haven't tried, I just sorta...know.

_You never know until you try..._

The bell rung, ending the argument between me and myself. It was an interesting thought, trying to change what I knew was unchangeable. Perhaps it could be done...

I walked in a daze to my next class and didn't even bother to try to look like I was paying attention. Could it happen? Could I with my strange girt of sight try to CHANGE the future? Could it really be done? I'd always taken the fact that some of these futures were just unchangeable, and worked with it, never had the idea to defy the future ever come up. Defy, that was an interesting word. Defying the future.

What would have happened if I had tried to stop what had happened with me and Jasper... Could we have actually stayed together? We could have lived on the way we had before, I could have fixed things, I could have done SOMETHING. But I didn't. I didn't try once to change anything.

I shook myself out of those thoughts, I really shouldn't think of Jasper, what was the point. I cant travel through time as much as i can see through it.

_Stop moping and get over it girl. _Yeah, yeah, alright.

To keep my mind off of Jasper I switched my train of thought to a another puzzle. How did this girl-_Bella, she has a name you dimwit_- keep her thoughts from Edward? But what area had i not covered before on this plane of thought, I have considered every option that came to mind but to no avail. I just could not know from one trial. I would have to get to know the gi-, Bella, to find out more.

_Oh so now you are making excuses to see her? So much for your opposition. _Shut up.

The sound of babbling students told me that this class period had ended and it was now lunchtime. I wasn't nearly as eager as i had been the other day to go sit with my family, I didn't talk to any of them the other day and they probably wanted an explanation. I wasn't really in the mood to talk.

No food from the lunch line today, didn't quite care enough to put up the act. That whole line of thought with Jasper really sent me into a downer mood. I slumped into the chair next to Emmett and stared blankly across the room. I could sense Jasper looking at me but I ignored it, what did he care really.

My gaze traveled around the room, stopping only at the table where Bella had sat the other day. Odd, she wasn't there. Maybe she had gone to Alaska too. I laughed to myself at that thought, Bella didn't exactly seem the type to go somewhere so cold and harsh.

_Ah, there she is_, I thought as Bella walked through the cafeteria doors. I saw her glance at our table then hurriedly to the girl next to her to whisper something. So the girl was afraid, didn't need Edward here to see that. Who cares, nothing really matters right now, not even her.

Jasper then took this chance to send a wave of happiness my way, I was the happiest girl on the planet for a second. What could be better? I was alive, I was young (kinda) and i was SINGLE! Free to roam through the world of men and pick my way to the perfect one. I let out a loud laugh, this was going to be fun.

But then reality smacked into me once more as Jasper diverted his attention elsewhere. I took this opportunity of his distraction to give him a hard kick in the shins, and had he been anything but a vampire that kick would have broken his leg clear off. But alas, he was a vampire, so he only turned my way and glanced at me apologetically. He couldn't help himself, he didn't like people being upset. That was just the way that Jasper was.

Rolling my eyes I looked once more to the table to see Bella walking out of the lunchroom and have a worried Mike get up to follow her. The two girls beside her looked at one another confused but didn't bother following. Humans, they are so strange sometimes.

More and more people began to get up and file out of the cafeteria, so i decided to go with the flow and hang out in my next class. Who doesn't like more time to oneself?

Promising explanations later i got up from our table and walked to the next class, head simply buzzing with unanswerable questions. What I really wanted was for it to shut off for a second, to calm down and just relax. But my mind never quit, it was always thinking about EVERYTHING. Past, present, future, you name it i was more than likely to be thinking it. I made it my goal to concentrate on the rest of my classes today, that would be a welcome break from all this drama around me.

I successfully achieved my goal, thinking only of my studies just like any teacher would hope of their students. Freedom, the end of school and free to escape, I was home free at last! Something caught my eye, a flash of gray behind me. I turned to watch Bella attempt to walk backwards, running straight into me as I paused there in the hallway.

That bump sent a wave of her delectable scent my way, and I began to understand why Edward had run away. She had the sweetest blood I had ever had the pleasure of smelling. An animal withing me growled for her taste, hungering. I quickly shut down all breathing methods and concentrated. Damn, i should have known better after our last run in and our vision. This mortal was very lucky that I had gone hunting a night or two ago, or I would have been all over her.

"I told you to be careful." I said as she turned to look up at me.

"Sorry." Bella replied. "Really, I am. I should have been watching where I was going…"

"That would be a smart idea." I sighed as i began to pick up her fallen books. "You probably

should pay extra attention to walking since you seem to fall over a lot and bump into people."

The mortal then made mistake number two, she blushed. That pooling of blood in her face was ultimately tempting. No, I am in control, I am NOT a monster.

"Are you okay?" Bella asked. "I didn't hurt you, did I?"

"No." I smiled at the idea.

"I'm really sorry." The girl took her books from me with slightly trembling hands. "Can I do anything?"

"Pay more attention to where you're going."

"I will," Bella nodded. "I swear."

"Good."

I handed her back a few of her pencils, and waited. My eyes darted to the left over her shoulder. Jasper, now what was he up too?

"Um, do you want to hang out with me someday?" Bella said in a rush, then jumped as if surprised to hear the words come out of her mouth. She turned a deeper shade of red (which i did my best to ignore) and walked away quickly.

"Wait!", I called out. This was perfect! I could get to know her, find out how she did what she did, this was an opportunity i couldn't afford to miss. But Bella just kept walking away. I called out her name again, and rushed to grab hold of her shoulder. "Listen.", i said and smiled.

"I'm sorry." Bella blushed even further. "I didn't mean to…"

"I have some clothes that would look really good on you. Can you come over to my house Saturday morning?"

"Wait…" Bella said startled. "You…me….um...clothes?"

"Saturday then?", i insisted.

"I don't look good in clothes." Bella stuttered. "I mean, no! I didn't mean it like that. I meant….that…clothes don't look good on me….but I look better with clothes that without, I think….oh!"The flabbergasted girl covered her face with her hands, trying to hide the crimson blush that was deepening in shade every word that she babbled out.

I only laughed. "No, you do look good in clothes, you just need to wear better colors. Gray makes you seem washed out. It doesn't compliment your skin. You should wear browns and blues."

"Um…"

"Come to my house." I smiled. I'd have to be careful with her, she frightens easily. "I'll help teach you."

"I don't know where you live.", she pointed out.

"I'll pick you up then." I walked backwards while still talking to Bella, flaunting the skill only a little.

"Um…okay." She muttered. .

"See you tomorrow." I called and then walked over to Jasper waiting at the car. I shoved him up against the car roughly when Bella was out of sight. "What was that all about huh? First at lunch and then now? I DON'T need your help."

Jasper apologized profusely, but his words fell on deaf ears. I just slammed into the car and began to plot how i would make this Saturday work. This Saturday... this was going to be very interesting.

* * *

Cahira: At last, chapter two! I was wondering when we were going to put it up cause we already had it written... This was where we start getting confused with collaboration writing, and how much to differ things from one persons POV to the next. kinda messy and kinda boring as alot of the convos are exactly the same, but hey i'm workin on it. collaboration is veeerry tricksey at times like these.

Laura: Collab isn't so hard for me cause I write first. But... I know from past experince how hard it is to write the same chapter in someone elses POV. But yeah! Progress! Chapter two is up!


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N**

Cahira: ok so this chapter is super de duper long! just a warning. now read on Bellice readers, read on!

laura nods in agreement.

* * *

**BPOV:**

I was more mentally prepared the next morning when I found myself in Charlie's house. It still was slightly strange to be in a different bed. Perhaps it was because I was never easily able to adjust to that sort of thing. One thing I wasn't ready for was hearing a engine moments after I woke up. It took me a whole ten second before I recalled that I had asked Alice…

Quickly dressing, I heard the doorbell ring. "One minute!" I called rushing to pull on my jeans. I fell over trying to get them on but recovered myself. I ran my fingers through my hair roughly and opened the door.

Alice looked a thousand times better than I could ever hope to look. She was wearing all black, and managed to look not goth.

"Ready?" She asked.

I nodded and she gestured for me to follow her. I had only stepped out the front door when I stopped dead in my tracks. There was no way that she could expect me to ride it that!

"Is there a problem?" Alice looked at me.

"Um…" I blinked and ran my eyes across the car. It was sleek, shiny, new, and (just by looking at it I could tell) it was fast.

"Come on." She pulled my arm. "Get in."

I buckled my seatbelt carefully and looked at Alice. She looked older than seventeen in a way. She didn't look old, but she looked mature. I felt childish next to her. She backed out of the driveway quickly and almost effortlessly. I found myself watching her drive in awe. The way she drove, with so much grace, I wondered if she had many years of driving practice.

When I glances up at the road I nearly screamed.

"What!? What?!" she looked at me concerned.

"You are going so fast!" I inhaled sharply. "We're going to die!"

She laughed. "Don't worry. I'm not going to let you die, I promise."

"You're going like a hundred miles an hour!" I shouted.

"It's a road less traveled." She sighed. "No one goes here and I won't hit anyone. Who would be driving in Forks on a Saturday morning?"

"What if you get pulled over?" I attempted to regain my normal breathing.

"I won't." She rolled her eyes.

"How do you know?" I closed my eyes. "I mean, unless you can see the future or something…you CANT know!"

"Alright, alright." She stiffened slightly and I noticed out speed decrease to juts ten miles or so over the speed limit.

"Thank you." I breathed.

She laughed. "It will take longer for us to get there now, you know."

"Get where?" I asked confused. "You're house?"

"My house is in the opposite direction." She laughed.

"Then where are we going?"

"The mall!"

My heart nearly stopped. The moment seemed to last for infinity. I felt dread at the one word. 'Mall.'

"You okay?" Alice looked at me confused. For a moment it was almost as if she we as bewildered about me as I was with her.

"Mall?"

"Yeah…"

"I…don't do good in malls." I said hesitantly. "I'm not good at it."

"How can you be bad at going to a mall?" Alice looked at me for a long time.

"Eyes on the road, please!" I pointed towards the dashboard.

She obeyed and sighed. "Come on…it will be fun!"

"Fine," I crossed my arms. "But I don't have any money."

"I'll pay for everything." Alice smiled at me. I wondered if she was trying to buy me as a friend. I mean, I knew she was well off, but no one was rich enough to buy things for people they barely knew.

"No," I shook my head. "Please don't buy me anything. I don't want anything really. I have all the clothes I need."

"Yes, but your clothes are too plain." Alice sighed exasperated. "And you need new colors. Brighter colors…"

For the entire way to the mall we argued about clothing and her buying me things. She kept trying to tell me that she had more than enough money, but I didn't think that she should buy me things even if she could afford this car and so many designer clothes for herself.

When we finally got to the Mall, she had basically won the argument.

"Fine," I pouted. "But I don't have to be happy about it."

She smiled and grabbed my hand which surprised me. I had only just met her. Surprisingly, I didn't mind it. It was mostly just a shock. Her hand was very tiny though. I felt kind of big. Great. Bella the big klutz walking next to pixie petite graceful Alice. What a pair.

Alice guided me into the stores. She passed over the typical teen brands and when to more classic chic stores. It made her seem even more mature. I asked her why she was skipping stores like Hollister and Abercrombie and she told me that I wouldn't look good in their style.

I wasn't sure to be offended or not. She said it in a nice way.

"Try this on." She threw a few things at me and I astonished myself by catching them.

"There are like…twenty things!" I looked at all of them. Some of these I could never fit into. "I wont look good in any of this!"

"Just try them on." Alice pushed me into the dressing room.

I changed into the least revealing shirt and pants that I could find in the stack of clothes. I looked in the mirror and I didn't look bad. I obviously didn't match Alice in the looks department, but I looked decent.

"Come out and show me." Alice said. I had barely stepped out of the door when she pushed me back in.

"Change again!" She ordered through the door.

"Did you even see me?" I asked frustrated. I had taken a lot of time changing into those.

"Yes I did." She sighed. "Now try on the blue shirt."

"Blue shirt?" I sifted through the pile and found two blue shirts. "Which one?"

"The darker blue one."

I pulled on the shirt hastily and looked in the mirror. I actually looked…pretty damn good. I blinked and turned. The only problem was that it was ridiculously low in the neckline. I pulled it up, but it fell down again. I guess I didn't have enough in the chest area to keep it up.

"We're buying that one." Alice said through the door.

"How do you know?" I asked. "You haven't even seen it on me."

"I just know, okay? Now take it off we're going to a different store."

I took the shirt off and pulled on my own T-shirt. Glancing in the mirror I saw that I had transformed from swan back into my old duckling self. I sighed. How ironic was it that my last name was Swann and I wasn't particularly beautiful. I was pretty I suppose, if you could look past my disproportionate features. My mouth was too large and my chin too small. My dark hair made my forehead look even wider than it was.

I frowned as a walked out of the dressing room. Alice took the clothes from me and dumped everything back except for he blue shirt and a few others that I hadn't tried on.

"How do you know they will look okay on me?" I asked worriedly as I watched her give the cashier a gold credit card.

"They will." She reassured me.

"What if they don't fit me right?" I eyed them. "They are rather small."

"Bella," Alice put a hand on my mouth. "They will fit, all right?"

I let her drag me through a few more stores. Occasionally she would get a blank look while holding a dress or shirt and then give it to me. Surprisingly, I wasn't asked to try on things often. She simply assured me that I would look good in them.

She picked out a few things for herself but not many. After a while I felt pretty comfortable considering that we were shopping. She was surprisingly easy to shop with. She didn't ask me to make any choices and the few things she told me to try on didn't look bad.

Then she pulled me towards a certain store and panic rose up again.

"Hell no!" I said loudly. "I am not not not gonna go in there!"

"Why not?" Alice sighed. "We don't have to get underwear. They have cute pajamas."

"Victoria's Secret?" I hissed as if it were a curse.

"Oh come on." Alice pulled me in. "Rosalie and I go here together. There's nothing wrong…"

"Well…you two are sisters!" I tried to escape but her grasp was too tight. "There is a difference!"

"Come on." She looked thoroughly amused at my expense. "I promise we wont try on anything."

I blushed furiously and she looked uncomfortable.

"Bella…" She pulled me past rows of lacy bras and I turned even redder.

"Alice." I choaked. "What if…someone….sees…us?"

"What do you mean?" she laughed. "You don't know a lot of people here."

"Oh my god." I mumbled. "I am in…oh…"

"I assume that your mother bought you all of your undergarments?" Alice looked at my beet red face.

I nodded unable to speak.

"Hold these." She handed me something. I let go of it as if it were on fire. "Relax! It's just pajamas."

I blushed further.

"Okay…you can go outside if you want." She sighed.

I ran out that door faster than I ever had during gym class. Surprisingly, I didn't trip until after I had gotten out of the store. I sat down on a bench and waited for Alice. My heart was still racing when she came out.

"Don't worry." She held up the pink bag. "I only bought pajamas."

"Well, why couldn't…you…have…bought them…in some other store?" I breathed heavily.

"Calm down." Alice grabbed my arm. "One more store and then we'll go home."

I felt slightly relieved but still didn't think I could forgive her.

When we had finished shopping, we drove home in silence. Well, not exactly silence. Alice would say something and I would say a brief answer which was followed by a heavy silence.

"Why are you so embarrassed by going into Victoria's Secret?" Alice finally asked.

"Don't say it!" I covered my flaming cheeks. At just the thought of the name I blushed.

"Victori-"

I covered her mouth.

She laughed but didn't push the subject further. For the rest of the car ride home I felt as if she were laughing at me.

When she pulled up in front of a large white three story house I blinked. This wasn't home.

"Welcome, to my humble abode." She got out of her car.

"This is…your home?" I asked confused. "I thought we were going to mine?"

"Why?" she asked. "The day has just begun!"

"Oh." A thought came into my head. "Won't your brothers and sister mind my presence?"

"No," Alice shook her head as she grabbed the shopping bags. "They are camping. They like to do that when the weather is warm and on weekends."

"Oh," I looked at her carrying all the bags. "Can I help?" I asked feeling bad about making her spend her money and then carry my things too.

"I've got it." She smiled. "It isn't heavy."

I frowned.

"Sure?"

"Here, take this one." She handed me the pink Victoria's secret bag. I blushed again.

I followed Alice into the house and felt awed to see how big it looked from the inside. The walls were painted a light lemon yellow and the room was very bright. It was a cozy room, which surprised me. I didn't think that the Cullens would have such a bright home. I didn't know what I had been expecting, something less cheerful and welcoming.

"Come on up to my room." Alice walked up the stairs quickly and I had to run to keep up with her pace. When we reached the top of the hallway I saw a cross hanging on the wall. It was very old and looked as if it was hundreds of years old. It was simple and wood, but it caught my attention.

"Are you Christian?" I asked.

"No," She made a face. "That's Carlisle's."

I must of made a face of confusion because she explained who Carlisle was quickly.

"Sorry, I suppose it must be strange for me to refer to my father by his first name." She said quickly. "He is my adoptive father though and …well…"

"I call my parents by their first names too." I smiled. "Renee and Charlie."

"Really?" Alice eyed me thoughtfully. I wondered what she was thinking but didn't feel brave enough to ask her, so I nodded.

I followed her to her room and was surprised at how neat it was. It looked as if she barely lived in here. There was very little in it that told anything about her personality. It seemed more like a guest room. There was a bed and dresser along with a few items here and there, but they seemed more like props that actual items.

"So, what do you think?" She held out her arms and sat on her bed.

"It's very nice." I smiled. "Far more clean than my room I have to admit."

"well, I don't really live in this room as much as in other rooms." She looked around. "I pretty much do my homework here and that's it. Other than sleeping of course." She added hastily. "I sleep in my room, because it is my bedroom….and I sleep there…here…I mean."

I felt kind of suspicious that she made such a big deal about sleeping. Obviously, she would sleep in her bedroom.

"You can drop that bag here," She took the pink bag from me and grabbed my wrist. "Come on."

"Where are we going?" I asked slightly nervously.

She said nothing but a evil grin appeared on her face which made me fearful. Uh oh. This couldn't be good.

"Alice?" I felt even more scared as she pushed me into a closet. Admittedly, it was a very large walk in closet. There were thousands of clothes in here along with a three way mirror like they had in clothing stores. There also was make-up all along a table on the side in front of another mirror.

"Sit here." Alice commanded pulling a small seat down for me.

I sat down in fear of making her upset if I didn't. "What are you doing?"

"I'm teaching you." She smiled deviously. I thought of trying to make a run for the door, but I had seen that she was just a bit faster and stronger than me. I wouldn't have a chance.

I watched her in the mirrors as she applied make-up to my face. She explained everything that she was doing to me, but I couldn't remember all of the things she was doing. She did it so fast that is was all a blur. When she finished, she beamed. I looked in the mirror and felt like I was staring at a different person.

I was very pretty with all the make-up, but I didn't look like myself. I looked like someone who was popular and nice. I didn't look like someone who had spent the last four years of her life spending Saturdays at home with her mother reading classical literature.

"What do you think?" Alice tilted her head. "Maybe the raspberry tone is a bit too much…"

She wiped off my lipstick and applied a less bright color. I still couldn't recognize myself.

"Okay, now for your hair." She grabbed a brush.

"My hair?" I covered my head. "My hair is fine."

"It is very nice, but you let it frizz." Alice picked up a few locks of my hair and twirled them thoughtfully. Her eyes went slightly blank for a while and then she smiled again. She began brushing my hair. "I know just what to do with it…"

"Should I be scared?" I asked.

"No," she laughed. "Just sit back and relax."

I frowned and she began to mess with my hair, which I thought looked okay to begin with. She put some goopy stuff in my hair and then twisted around. More than once I let out a few yelps when she pulled my hair too hard. She apologized and told me beauty was nothing without pain.

When she finally finished, my hair was slightly curled and hung around my face. It looked like my mothers hair slightly. I smiled.

"It's really pretty." I looked up at her. For once she was taller than me, but that was because I was sitting and she was standing.

"I knew you would like that one." She touched my hair softly and looked at me in the mirror thoughtfully. For a moment we said nothing. I didn't want to disrupt her thought. There was something about her that was supernatural. She didn't seem human.

I watched her silently while she looked at me. After a while we both smiled and broke out into giggles even though nothing was funny. Alice pulled me up from the chair as though I weighed nothing and towed me over towards the clothing.

"Can I ask you to try on one more thing?" Alice asked politely.

"Okay." I sighed.

"This," She threw a few things at me. I caught one of them, but dropped it a second later. Alice giggled.

I looked at it and then made a face. "It's a dress." I held it up.

"Yes." She smiled. "Isn't it pretty?"

I examined it. It had a very modest cut and was a emerald color.

"Alice, it is really pretty," I looked at her. "But…I don't think it will fit me. It is so small." I blushed.

"No," Alice shook her head confidently. "It will fit you."

"Alice," I held the dress up to my body. "I don't think it will…"

"It will be snug, but not tight. Try it on."

"I've been told I looked awful in green…"

"Whoever told you has an awful fashion sense." Alice gave me a nudge. "Try it on?"

I nodded and she didn't move. I sighed sensing that she wasn't going to leave the room and quickly took off my shirt. I figured that then once the dress was on, I could take off my pants and avoid showing the most skin I could. Even so, I blushed furiously.

I pulled the dress over me and then slipped off my jeans. I put on the pair of brown ballet flats and looked up at Alice.

"You look gorgeous, Bella." She smiled happily proud of her work. "You truly do. If only you didn't cover yourself so much…you don't even need all the work on your hair or make-up as long as you have a good color."

As I caught a glimpse of myself in a mirror, I felt amazed. The dress fit me perfectly. It was as if it had been sewn and tailored for me. I rotated a bit to see all angles.

I felt Alice's hands slide around my waist. I looked to the left and saw her looking up at me happily. "I'm glad you like it. I was hoping you might."

"You are…really good at this kind of stuff." I glances around. "I'm kind of a failure as a girl…I mean…I don't know how to dress or anything…I generally just grab a t-shirt or something…"

"I noticed." Alice rolled her eyes.

I looked back at the mirror. If only Renee could see me now…she was always in love with shopping and things like that. I came along with her, but we both had a silent agreement that she never asked me to try things on and I never did. This worked more smoothly that way.

I'm sure that she would have enjoyed being with Alice. There were a lot alike in ways. The main difference was that Alice acted a lot more mature than my mother, which was slightly funny. For once I had a peer that was more mature than I was. Renee made fun of me for being born middle-aged and getting older everyday.

"Come on," Alice dragged me away from the mirror. "We should get you lunch. What do you want?"

"Oh, I'm not so hungry." I said honestly. "Anything is fine."

"Is a sandwich okay?" Alice asked cautiously.

"Yeah, that would be fine." I nodded. I tried to follow her, but Alice told me to stay in the room. I sat down on the chair again and waited for her to come back. I hated having people serve me, but I didn't think I had a choice about it this time.

When she came back she carried a tray with a sandwich cut neatly in half and two glasses of water.

"Here you go!" She passed me the tray and took a glass of water for herself.

"Aren't you hungry?" I asked her as she took a sip of water.

"No," She shook her head. "I don't eat lunch."

"Why not?" I asked taking a bite out of the sandwich.

"I'm not hungry then. I generally don't have to eat much. I have a small appetite."

"So, you don't eat lunch?"

"Generally not." She smiled. "It's not an important meal to me."

We talked was I ate. I thought it was slightly weird that she didn't eat too, but I didn't say anything more on the subject to avoid being rude. When I finished, she took the tray away from me and told me to wait again.

I was curious to why she didn't want me to do anything. Was she simply trying to be a good hostess?

"Do you want to watch a movie?" I jumped surprised by her voice.

"You're done?" I asked.

"I'm pretty quick at cleaning." She grinned. "So a movie?"

"Um…sure." I nodded. "What movie?"

She named a few movies on her fingers. Most of them were horror films. I didn't want her to be unhappy, so I picked the movie that sounded the most scary out of them. I had a suspicion that she liked horror films. She seemed surprised that I had chosen that movie but didn't ask.

I followed her to a room with a large sofa and a giant plasma screen television.

"Wow," I looked at it. "This is really nice!"

"It's Emmett's." She put in the DVD. "He has a thing for movies. Well, movies and video games. This is generally his video game television. I tend to use the smaller one upstairs, but there is a good surround sound on this one…better for scary movies."

I nodded and sat on the couch. She plopped down next to me and clicked play on the remote.

For the first, five minutes I kept my eyes glued to the screen. Within a minute of the title screen about ten people were murdered. Alice giggled and I felt horrified. About halfway through the movie I let out a squeak as a person was torn into pieces. Alice asked me if I was okay and I nodded unable to say anything.

I watched the rest of the movie hoping that it would end soon. I felt sick to my stomach.

"Do you get sick at the sight of blood?" Alice asked me when the movie finally ended.

"Generally it is more of the smell than the sight, but I don't like…watching it." I admitted.

"Smell?" Alice's eyes widened. "You can smell blood…you can't…no human can smell blood."

"Well…I can." I wrinkled my nose. "It smells like rust…and it is bitter." I felt nauseous thinking of it.

"You alright?" Alice looked at me curiously. I nodded.

Suddenly, I felt myself being pulled into her arms. She was harder than I would have expected and cold all over. I felt relaxed for a while and the nausea passed.

"I feel…better." I blinked and sat up. "How'd you do that?"

"Do what?" She asked confused.

"I was sick feeling talking about blood and then it passed." I blinked. "It was like…"

Alice laughed. "I didn't do anything. That was just time. I don't have any special healing powers. Generally it is my brother who is the family miracle worker. He is good at making people feel better. Not me."

"Emmett is good at making people feel good?" I thought of how large and terrifying looking he was. I didn't think that he would make me feel comforted. Intimidated, perhaps, but comforted…no.

"No, not Emmett." Alice trailed off into thought. "Jasper."

"Jasper is the blonde?"

Alice nodded and her eyes became unfocused slightly in a way that made her look sad, as if she wanted to cry but couldn't. She blinked and smiled at me sorrowfully.

"Well," Alice stood up. "How about a funny movie? To make things better, you know? Get rid of some of those images from the last one. What do you say?"

"Sure." I watched her sift through DVDs absent mindedly. She looked as if she was reflecting on some conflict. I wondered if I could ask her about it or not.

"Here's a good one." She put in the movie.

"What is it?" I asked curiously.

"You'll see…"

I groaned curious. I was patient though and waited for the title to come up. When it did, I recognized the title from previews on TV, but I hadn't seen it.

The movie was far more lighthearted than the previous one. Alice and I laughed together during the movie. For a while, it felt as if we had known each other for ages. During the movie I felt her glance at me to see if I found the same things funny as she did. When the movie ended I was sad that it was over because it was so funny.

"Feeling better?" Alice asked me.

"Very." I smiled.

"Are you hungry?" She stood up. "Do you want pizza?"

"Sure." I smiled. "That would be great."

"What kind do you want?"

"Any kind." I shrugged. "I'm not a picky eater. Whatever you want."

Alice looked at me for a while and then pulled out a cell phone from her pocket. She dialed the number from memory which surprised me. I wondered if she had a very good memory or ordered pizza a lot. She ordered a pizza with everything on it. I smiled. I liked my pizza's that way.

"Okay," She hung up the phone. "Do you want a bit of a tour of the house?"

"Sure." I nodded enthusiastically. I was intrigued by the Cullen's.

Alice showed me the main rooms; the kitchen, the dinning room, the living room. All of them were very orderly and clean. Then she took my past her father's office which was filled with books both old and new. She showed me Edward's room, which looked like it was a music studio rather than a bedroom. Alice explained to me that Edward didn't have a bed because he felt that a sofa was all he needed.

Alice walked me past Rosalie's room but she didn't open the door. I didn't ask why.

Alice showed me the rest of the house, which was even larger than I thought it was. We weren't even finished when the doorbells rang. I ran after Alice as she gracefully went towards the door.

She took the pizza from the pizza delivery man and I couldn't help but notice that she gave him an excessively large tip.

"Ready for some pizza?"

She took the box to the kitchen and grabbed two plates. She set one in front of me and one in front of herself. She served me a piece and took another for herself. I watched her eat. She didn't look like she was enjoying it. She didn't finish even one piece so I felt compelled to eat another two to make up for it. She had ordered so much pizza.

When I finished she placed our plates in the dishwasher and then turned to me.

"What is your favorite movie of all time?" Alice asked me.

"Um…" I blushed and remembered Jessica's reaction.

"Come on." Alice smiled. "Tell me."

"Um…Romeo and Juliet…" I mumbled quietly.

"I love that play!" Alice said loudly. "One of my favorites! Would you rather see the 1996 version or the 1954 version? I have both."

"You have the 1954 version?" I asked amazed. "I only have the new one. I couldn't find any others in the stores."

"Oh," Alice laughed. "You just need to know where to look."

We discussed the literary value of Romeo and Juliet versus the screenplay versions for a while. I was surprised that I had found someone who also loved Shakespeare. Not many teenagers did. Although, of all people, I wasn't surprised Alice did. She seemed more sophisticated than the average teenager.

We sat down to watch her version of Romeo and Juliet. I grew tired about halfway through but didn't want to miss anything. I leaned against Alice and during the part where Juliet sees Romeo dead I began to cry as I always do. Then, I closed my eyes and I must have fallen asleep.

Images flashed through my mind. I was walking in school with Jessica. We were laughing and talking but then she pushed me away suddenly. I fell over. She laughed as my hands bled from getting scraped along the concrete sidewalk.

Mike Newton pulled me up into his arms, but then he wouldn't let go. I tried to tell him that I needed to go, but he refused to let go of me. I tried to break free and he grabbed my wrist. I was just about to give up and let him keep me when I felt a cold hand.

Alice stood behind me smiling. She was so kind and happy looking. Then her eyes went blank suddenly as they had done before when we first met and she looked scared. She whispered something to me but I couldn't hear. It sounded like a warning. She spoke to quietly though... She pushed me away. I didn't want to leave her alone when she was so scared so I stayed with her.

She touched my hair lightly and then shoved me away roughly. I was thrown across the room like a doll. Her gentle golden eyes turned black and she looked angry. She was stunning in a horrifying way. Yet, I wasn't scared of her, only scared for her. She walked towards me and lowered herself down to me. I hadn't realized that I was on the ground.

She touched my cheek and I leaned into her touch. She moved down to my neck and then bit me. I felt dizzy and smelled blood. I made a slight gasp and then she stopped. She mumbled an apology and everything grew dark.

**APOV**

I know its childish to act so, but I'm not going to deny that i am kind of excited for our little outing today. Bouncing on a bed that was never properly used (poor bed) i leaped off with an excited yelp. _Oh what to wear what to wear_, I thought as i sifted through my massive closet. Rejected clothes flew left and right, settling in lonely piles on the floor. I held up another crimson shirt for inspection, but no. Though i went hunting the other night it would be best not to test my limits. I would be having enough trouble with that delicious smell anyway. I tossed it over my shoulder and continued to search through my clothes. _Ah, perfect. Simple yet bold._ I settled on a pair of black jeans and a long sleeve black shirt. I briefly considered an overly large sun hat, but decided against it. There was no need to hide from the sun today, it was safely hidden by great poofy rainclouds.

I glanced at the clock quickly, right, just late enough for Bella to be waking up. With another excited yelp I rushed out of the room to the expansive garage. I chose the silver corvette, I had a need for speed at the moment, and what better to calm my nerves than a sports car?

Pulling out of the driveway lightning quick, i sped down the empty road, letting the thrill of themoment course through my body. What a wonderful thing, speed. The wind whipped my short cropped hair around my head, the short strands doing a wild dance on my skull. The feeling was almost therapeutic.

I returned to reality just in time to realize i was at Bella's house already. I swung open the car door and took a deep breath. It wouldn't do if frightened away Bella due to my excessive energy. This thought however, did not stop me from racing to the doorbell and bouncing on my feet as i waited.

"One minute!", the muffled call from Bella responded. I heard a loud THUMP and chuckled silently to myself, this girl could barely walk without falling. A couple of seconds later the door opened to reveal a slightly frazzled Bella.

"Ready?", i asked as i looked her over. She was still wearing dull grays despite my advice against it, and the clothes looked slightly wrinkled, as though slept in. I sighed to myself mentally, we had a lot of work to do. Bella nodded to my earlier question and stepped out the door, only to freeze upon sighting my car.

"Is there a problem?" I asked. Looking over to her she looked slightly stunned. An expression she seemed to wear a lot around me.

"Um...", she stuttered and blinked, subconsciously biting her lip.

"Come on, get in.", I said as i practically dragged the girl to the car. Jesus she was afraid of everything. We got into the car and i easily pulled out of the driveway. Bella would get used to this over time, i am certain.

Out of the blue Bella gave a terrified shriek, and progressed to hold her seat in a grip of iron.

"What?! What?!", I blurted caught off guard, and i looked almost afraid of what i would see. Some terrible monster chewing on her ankle? Remnants of last nights hunting exhibition? Alas, she was only staring at the road, eyes near popping out of her head. I glanced at the road, confused, then back at her.

"You are going so fast! We're going to die!", she managed to squeak through lips tight with fear. She was breathing as though she had just run a marathon.

I laughed, so that was all it was. "Don't worry. I'm not going to let you die, i promise."

"You're going like a hundred miles an hour!" she yelled, regaining the ability to speak. I looked concernedly where her hands were squishing the nice leather of my seats, she would soon rip it off at this rate.

_Relax_, i thought, a tad exasperated. "Its a road less traveled," I explained with a sigh "no one goes here and i wont hit anyone. Who would be driving in Forks on a Saturday morning?"

"What if you get pulled over?", was her worried reply.

I rolled my eyes, what a thought. "I wont."

"How can you know?", she closed her eyes, trying to get control of her body. "I mean unless you can see into the future or something, you CAN'T know!"

I stiffened as soon as the words had come out of her mouth. She couldn't know...No..but she avoided Edwards talent... No, she couldn't. "Alright, alright." I slowed the car to what felt like a crawling speed and she let out a sigh of relief, thanking me.

"It will take longer for us to get there now, you know." i pointed out. I had to laugh at her fear of speed, how could anyone be afraid of something so beautiful?

"Get where? Your house?"

Ah of course, i had forgotten that she was unaware of todays plan. This would be fun, the ever so easily startled and shy Bella would flip.

"My house is in the opposite direction", i laughed. I was enjoying this little game.

After a moment of pause she asked warily "Then where are we going?"

"The Mall!", i said with great excitement. Now to see her reaction. I watched as she turned a few shades paler (if possible) than before. Well that was a tad unexpected.

"You alright?", i inquired.

"Mall?", she squeaked.

"Yeah..." Man this girl just didn't quit when it came to being timid.

"I...don't do good in malls. I'm not good at it."

This idea was completely new to me. "How can you be bad at going to a mall?", i said tuning to look at her with bewildered eyes. Bad at going to malls? Impossible! This girl had placed me into unfamiliar and alien territory.

She let out another squeak and pointed frantically to the road. "Eyes on the road please!"

I sighed heavily and turned back to the road. This was going to be harder than i previously expected. "Come on it will be fun!"

Bella pouted and crossed her arms in a huff. "Fine. But i don't have any money."

This was an easy one. "Ill pay for everything", i chirruped, and smiled. I saw Bella give me a calculating look, eyes narrowed. She was suspicious of me, only natural i supposed.

"No, please don't buy me anything." she said shaking her head furiously, her franticly waving hair sent waves of her delicious scent my way. "I Don't want anything really, i have all the clothes i need."

Why did she insist on making this so difficult? "Yes, but your clothes are far too plain, and you need new brighter colors..." I explained to her slowly.

"But your money i couldn't spend it!"

"Ridiculous," i waved that one off, deflecting the pointless argument. "Ive got plenty of cash. Besides I've been looking for something to splurge on."

"But Alice!"

And the banter went on and on and on and on and on. Why couldn't she just accept the gift? It wasn't any big deal, but no, she just couldn't have me spending my money on her. Now it was a challenge and i simply couldn't just give in, this girl doesn't know what she has gotten herself into. She would have to learn.

"Look, you Don't get a choice, its my money and i'll spend it how i please. I bought this pretty lady right here, buying you clothes will be nothing." I said fondly patting the seat of my car. It was a beauty wasn't it?

"Ugh, whatever." Yes, she gave in, battle won. Just in time too, as we had at last reached the mall. Who could stand going so slow? I know my skin was itching almost the entire time.

"Fine. But i Don't have to be happy about it.", she pouted. I stared at her and smiled for a minute, transfixed by those pouting lips. How cu-

_Falling already huh? Heh, you sure are proving them wrong. _

I wasn't thinking that! Cute as in girl cute, like a teddy bear! You know what, what am i doing justifying myself to you, I'm completely in control, its all going according to plan.

_Of course, thats why you are still staring at her like a love struck moron right?_

Go away...

To make up for lost time i quickly began walking, grabbing her hand just to spite the voice. I certainly didn't do it because it felt nice, just to get back at that damn voice. This was all just a part of the plan, a test. I will change the future, i will prove her wrong. You'll see. I'm completely in control.

Furious with myself i dove into the mall, devoting all of my attention to choosing clothes for

Bella. Alright so malls, clothes, right focus. Color! Color was what we needed here and what Bella desperately needed to work on in her wardrobe. Every girl knows that colors are the thing to look for in a mall if you have no fashion sense. I began to teach Bella my tricks.

"You wear dull colors. They are fine for people with a richer skin tone, but on you it just pales your beauty." I explained once in a classy chic store that I absolutely loved. We had walked past many of the other clothes stores in the mall, not nearly good enough for Bella nor myself. "See this shirt. This has a good shape, but there is no color to it, so it wouldn't highlight your features."

"So I have to wear bright colors?" Bella asked clearly confused. She looked like a deer in headlights. Another deer pranced through my minds eye briefly before suddenly falling underneath my strong arms, a slight flashback of last nights dinner. What am I doing comparing her to food like this? She is not an animal, she is not prey, she is Bella! Maintain Alice, come on now.

"Not bright colors, exactly…" I wondered how to explain this to her. "More…like this."

I held up a silk skirt that was a deep red in color. The cloth was smoother than most other fabric, but i couldn't help but think it couldn't compare to Bella's skin. Bella smiled blankly and I knew she had no clue that it would look good on her.

"You see, Bella." I began shuffling through racks and pulling out more items with deep colors. "You have the skin for a deep color. You are pale, yes, but you can make the color of your skin look gorgeous rather than sickly. If I can pull it off, you can."

Bella gave me a look as to what she thought about that last sentence, but none the less picked out a dark brown sweater and held i out for me to judge. I shook my head sadly and put it back before anyone saw me holding it. I had a long way to go on this girl. That sweater was way too dark and it had no form. It would fall right off her shoulders, causing a great embarrassing scene wherever she would be at that time, if that could top the embarrassing fact that she was wearing such a hideous sweater. No, this would not make her look attractive at all.

"What was wrong with that? It was deep, right?" She asked puzzled.

"No, that was dark. That would make you look…" I closed my eyes and searched for the word.

"Pale…no…not pale….sort of like…like a…"

"Like a vampire?"

I stared at her for a moment, slightly afraid and curious. I calmed myself quickly though, it was easy enough to connect vampire to pale, I was a living example after all. It didn't mean anything. Still... I felt like she knew my secret and was just trying to see how long it would take before I snapped and actually told her, a very uncomfortable sort of paranoia...

" Wow, are you afraid of them or something? Every time the subject comes up you freeze up like that. Relax, it was just a joke!" She sighed.

I smiled and mumbled a "sure". How ironic that she thought me afraid of vampires when in reality that was what i really was. I pushed the thought aside and then went to the next rack, sifting through large amounts of clothing for things that could look good on Bella. Each time I touched a piece of clothing I had to make up my mind to have her try it on, only with that confidence of the future would I actually be able to see her in it in one of my visions. After years of practice though, this task was a simple one and took a matter of milliseconds. Eventually, I had to make her try on a few things so she would think that I actually knew what I was buying. While she was changing I couldn't avoid the vivid images of her getting undressed that flashed through my mind, but it didn't really bother me. It was quite fascinating to tell the truth. I noted while she was changing that she had a very plain bra and her underwear didn't match. This would mean a trip to the wonderland of pink and frilly laces, Victoria secret!

Bella got out of the dressing room, and a few dozen items bought later we were on our way to Victoria's. As we drew near I felt Bella's weak attempts to stop me from moving further, and confused I turned back to look at her.

"Hell no! I am not going in there.", she yelled in protest. He face turned crimson when I tried to bring her into the store anyway. I frowned at her, unsurprised but still disappointed in this type of behavior. Was she going to ruin all of the fun I had planned?

"Why not? We don't have to get underwear. We can get cute pajamas!" I said with a winning smile, trying to entice the skittish girl into the store. I wasn't about to let her know that i was going to sneak in a few bras and panties in there.

"Victoria's Secret?" She hissed back at me.

"Oh come on." I dragged her in gently, trying not to show my full strength, causing her to turn a deeper shade of red. Glancing back at her I decided to go with a different tactic. "Rosalie and I go here together. There's nothing wrong…"I explained to her, a pleading look in my eyes.

"Well…" i saw her hesitate, victory was near! "You two are sisters!" she writhed in my grip, and eyed her wrist as though she was contemplating chewing it off to escape. Alas, failure. "There is a difference!" She insisted, resorting to wild hand motions now to drive in her point.

"Come on." I found it almost amusing how ridiculous she was being about all this, the hand motions were a bit over the top. "I promise we wont try on anything."

She blushed once more and the scent of all that blood became nearly unbearable. There was far too much blood, the whole mall was beginning to shake. Damn, had it been any other girl this wouldn't have been such a problem. The predator within me growled and lunged for the girl, but i reigned it in tight, refusing to lose to that monster.

"Bella…" I wanted to tell her to stop blushing but I didn't know how, what could I possibly say to make her understand? She blushed even harder.

"Alice. What if…someone….sees…us?", her eyes scrutinized the crowd of mall shoppers frantically, shrinking her head down to avoid detection.

"What do you mean?" I laughed trying to shake the predator out of my head. "You don't know a lot of people here." Quickly I began to talk about non-important things to stop thinking of blood. My mouth may have been very occupied but it didn't do much for my mind. What could i use to distract myself, what should I think of? I started translating songs in English to Koren and changing the melody so the choppy words would fit in it, still it could not satisfy my mind. I brushed my hand against a pair of socks and Bella's legs popped into my head, feet bearing the socks proudly. Strange... her image seemed to fill my whole mind, but some how keep the scent of her own blood away. Seized by this idea i ran my hands through the few items of clothing that weren't too...personal, to picture Bella in.

I actually came upon a pair of pants that looked alright on her, the distraction was effective and productive! "Hold these." I handed her the pair of pants and she spazzed throwing them to the floor. "Relax! It's just pajamas."

She began blushing even deeper, and that was one blush too many. I thrust my hand into the nearest piece of clothing but shied away when Bella flashed through my mind in a near see through lacy black bra. I couldn't stand it, her blood, her body in such clothing, I needed to get her out of here.

"Okay…you can go outside if you want." I breathed. I just needed to clear my mind and then I would be alright. I went hunting the previous night, it should just be a matter of time and then I would be in perfect control.

Bella ran out of the store like a demon was on her tail. As she disappeared my mind cleared instantly. I grinned happily, now I was able to pick out underwear without sneaking about.

I grinned as I saw a lacy set, much less see through than the one i had stumbled upon before. There were two colors, black and red. I grabbed both, red for Bella and black for me.

I paid for the underwear and pajamas up front, my cashier being a fiery ginger with the looks of a cat about her. Her surprisingly high soprano voice tinkled a "Have a nice day" and i was out of there.

I decided I had had my fill of fun at the mall and Bella had had her fill of the mall in general, so we drove home after that eventful last store. The drive back was quiet but not uncomfortable, the two of us sat in what I felt could be described as a companionable silence. Finally we reached the house, and we unloaded all the new clothes from the car. I gave Bella the notorious pink bag with a wink, and she nearly dropped it in her embarrassment, and stumbled across the doorway.

"Come on up to my room." I was a little nervous, the voice was warning me it seemed, I was letting myself get carried away. I would have to be careful. The future, it seems, has a stronger pull than one might believe. It would take all my power to continue with this plan. I walked up the stairs and turned to look back at Bella, who was huffing and puffing after me. Great, now my nerves were getting to me. Control yourself dammit!

Casually i took a breath and walked down the hall, managing to maintain a more human speed. I was nearly home free, about 5 or so more feet to my room when i heard, or rather didn't hear Bella's footsteps behind me. I turned back to see her inspecting Carlisles cross. What a hideous thing really, it was a symbol of torture and regret. I didn't enjoy looking at it.

"Are you Christian?"she wondered aloud.

"No. Thats Carlisles." Her face contorted into a mask of confusion, so i quickly explained. "Carlisle is my father, well adopted father at least. I think of him more as a parole officer myself.", i giggled. "Sorry i suppose it must be strange for me to refer to my father with his first name. He's my adoptive father though...and...well..."

"I call my parents by their first names too, Renee and Charlie.", Bella smiled at me. Perhaps she could sense my hyper active nerves and was trying to calm them. Strange girl...She called her parents by their first names too... could there be a connection? She certainly was not a vampire, i could feel her warmth even with this amount of distance between us... Did she know things? Who was this girl? Letting the curiosity pass I explained to her that none of us were really related at all, in fact, it was more like we all were just roommates sharing a house. The cross was simply one of our roommates things.

Cross successfully explained we resumed the journey to my room.

Upon reaching said room I flopped down onto my bed gratefully. Bella stood in the doorway

and looked around, surprise dominating her features.

"So, what do you think?

Bella looked around, expression for once revealing nothing. "Its very...", she began but was unable to finish.

I sat up, concerned. "You don't like it? We can sleep in another room if you like."

"Oh no, no no, i meant to say it was very nice! It much cleaner than my room.", she smiled reassuringly.

"Well, I don't really live in this room as much as in other rooms." I said seeing through her attempt to fix her slip. My room wasn't full of personality, why would it be really? I've no real need of it. "I pretty much do my homework here and that's it. Other than sleeping of course." I added last minute. Slipping again it would seem. "I sleep in my room, because it is my bedroom….and I sleep there…here…I mean." I stumbled on, trying to fix my mistake but only making it worse.

Bella just gave me a look that said "uh...duh."

"You can drop that bag here,", I said, getting up and taking the pink bag, dropping it to the floor. "Come on." Oh this was really going to be fun...I pushed Bella into the closet that Esme, Rosalie and I shared. For once, I was going to actually be able to really give someone a makeover! Both Esme and Rosalie were too perfectly gorgeous to really wear makeup. Bella, however actually had a few imperfections, as minor as they were, I was compelled to add a little make-up to her face. Human imperfection, really, is a blessing.

I pushed Bella onto a chair in front of the make up desk/mirror i kept in there should such an occasion as this come to be, and ordered that she stayed put. Bella gave me a withering glare but I just smiled and jumped off to get what todays madness required.

A light brown eyeliner pencil was what i came back with first. "Most of the times, I don't use eyeliner too much." I babbled amiably as I put on the make-up, Bella was a skittish one so I hoped to sooth the fleeing instinct with some nice chatting. "But when you have a light amount of eyeliner in a soft color, you can really bring out your eyelashes."

Bella nodded, face a shade or two paler, and then blinked rapidly the second I stopped drawing on her. I wondered if she was trying to blink off the makeup or if she simply wasn't used to the feeling. New to make-up as she was I was near certain it was the later.

I explained how she should emphasize her fair skin while lightly powdering her face. She held very still and I noticed as I held her face that her cheeks were very soft, smooth as satin. For a moment I was tempted to brush my cheek against hers, but that would be wrong, it would scare her. Friends don't do that, heck, even normal people don't do things like that. My hands shook while holding the foundation powder and I decided to stop using it before I accidentally broke it. My how this girl tested my control.

"Um…Alice." Bella stuttered with a terrified glance as I picked up eye shadow.

"Don't worry." I sternly told her, and focused on the colors. Silver would look stunning, but it was in the middle of the day, silver was a color for the evening. One day when we were together for a formal event during the night I would make sure she wore a metallic silver on her eyes. It would look simply STUNNING on her. "Trust me, I won't use anything bright." I reassured her half minded, my focus on the make-up.

"Um…" The nervous brunette muttered.

"See," I swabbed the brush in a light brown. "Look at how plain this color is. It will hardly look like you are wearing makeup at all." I flashed her another smile but she only flinched away, so terrified was she of all this.

"Then why put it on?" Bella asked confused and no doubt feeling cornered. She looked like she did at Victoria's Secret, eyes searching the room for an escape route.

"Close your eyes." I sighed, why don't you trust me?

"Really, why even bother putting it on?" She frowned.

Ignoring her question I quickly got a dark deep brown on the brush while her eyes were closed. I applied it to the bottom of her eye lids close to her eyelashes and then blended the two colors until they softly accented her eyes. It was perfect. I was glad that Rosalie had taught me how to do makeup, it was so much fun! I never wore it myself of course, but I loved using it to make other people look pretty. I chuckled, feeling very much like a young girl with her doll. Bella's image flashed through my mind in Barbie doll clothes and I barely held back a giggle. Bella looked up at me suspiciously, but all traces of laughter had been erased from my features carefully by then.

Bella watched me in the mirror and I pretended to be focused on mascara.

"How often do you wear makeup, Alice?"

"Me?" I held two different brands of mascara in my hands trying to decide. "Oh, I dunno. Maybe once a month." Or not at all... same difference.

"Once a month?!" She asked wide eyed.

"Yeah, why?" I chose the more subtle mascara. Bella's beauty was subtle so her makeup should be too, I reasoned.

"Oh…" Bella looked at me thoughtfully. "Are you not wearing make-up now?"

"Nope." I smiled turning to her. "Now look up at the ceiling. I'm gonna put on more makeup."

She obliged but kept talking. "I thought you always wore makeup. But since you don't….I dunno. You are just too pretty to not be wearing makeup. Are you sure you didn't put any on?"

"Positive." I brushed her eyelashes gently and smiled. Vampires were naturally gorgeous, i was blessed...or cursed depending on how you thought about it, with natural beauty. It shocked all humans. For once Bella was acting almost like a normal human being, which shocked this vampire.

"Does your sister wear makeup?"

"My sister?" I froze for a moment. My sister... My sister believed me to be dead. I had occasionally checked up on her at a distance, but never talked to her for many years. Of course how could one talk to a younger sister who was now almost 80 years your senior?...

"Rosalie?"

"Oh," Understanding washed over me. Rosalie, my sister, right. "Rosalie wears it to school and places, but Emmett generally has a way of taking her lipstick off at home…"

Bella laughed, imagining the process of lipstick removal. Seizing the moment of a temporary lapse of her defense system I grabbed an eyelash curler and held it towards her. Bella protested for a while scared to let me near her with it held firmly in my hands. I was surprised that she had never seen an eyelash curler before, but not very much so. Bella had no knowledge of make-up it would seem. They didn't hurt at all, but none the less fear radiated off of her body as i drew near. It was just metal, sheesh. Eventually, I won the argument and I was able to use it. She was deathly still though as if she were afraid that I would tear out her eyes, little did she know I needed no such tool to get that particular job done.

I reapplied the mascara that the eyelash curler took off and then separated her eyelashes with an eyelash brush.

"So am I done?" the squirming Bella asked.

I shook my head. "Nearly, patients is a virtue Bella." I scolded her lightly.

I picked up a raspberry toned matte lipstick and applied it to her. It made her look beautiful, but she wouldn't like it all that much, too... poppy. I smeared it off with a tissue and reapplied a more peach toned color. I made sure that the lipstick I was using had no gloss in it. Glossy lips was a stupid fashion in my mind. Who would want to have sticky looking lips? No good for kissing, no good for looks, no purpose at all. Classic was the best look in my opinion. One could never go wrong with something simple and elegant.

"Done?" She asked looking in the mirror.

"Yes." I sighed. "I'm done."

She smiled and made a face that showed her dislike for makeup.

"Can i ask you to try on one more thing? Besides the make up I mean.", i asked carefully. This was the time to bring out the big surprise. Had to be cautious though, always cautious.

Bella sighed an "ok" and i ran off to get her new outfit. I was back a second later and i threw the surprise at her in my excitement. Bela's eyes widened as the items flew at her and she fumbled, but some how managed to catch the main part of her surprise. She dropped it after realizing what it was though, thus failing to hold on to any part of it. She winced, whether at her failure or the fact i had splurged on her yet again i do not know.

"Its a dress.", she said holding i up. Ah, so she wasn't a fan of dresses eh?

"Yes, isn't it pretty?" i replied and she winced again. Did the girl know how expressive she was? It was quite interesting to watch.

Bella looked over the dress, her expression changing to one of worry. "Alice it's really pretty..", she turned to me giving me the full blast of her fear. "But... I Don't think it will fit me. Its so small." she blushed uncomfortably. Wow she was really going to have to work on that, i could barely stand the sight of her sweet smelling blood pooling in her face. I shook my head, trying to shake loose the scent that plagued me so. I must remain in control, i am NOT a monster!

" No, it will fit you." Come now surely she knew that she could trust me on the subject of clothes.

Yet she still argued, "Alice, I Don't think it will..." she held the dress up against her body to prove the point.

"It will be snug, but not tight. Try it on."

"I've been told i look awful in green..."

"Whoever told you has an awful fashion sense. Try it on?" i nudged her gently. Finally she gave in and nodded with a sigh. She looked at me expectantly, for what i don't know, but after a moment began to change into the dress. She was embarrassed, i could tell by that cursed blush that creeped across her features, but i didn't look away. There was something memorizing about her, and she had a really nice body, she really shouldn't hide it under all those dull tasteless clothes.

_Justifying your perversion with clothes hm? Pathetic. Why not just admit it, she is hot, you love to look at her body... especially when shes shirtless._ The voice snapped at me gutturally.

What? No, really, other clothes would look better on her...that wasn't a lie...

_Sure that wasn't a lie, but you didn't deny you like looking her did you. You know she shirtless in our bedroom... why not take advantage of the moment and-_

No! Absolutely not, Don't even think about going there, i couldn't!

_Why?..._

I ignored it, I was running out of answers it seemed. Bella was almost finished dressing now, slipping on the brown flats i had tossed to her, she looked back up at me.

Oh... Those eyes... "You look gorgeous Bella. You truly do." I became aware of the fact that i was smiling but didn't bother to change that. "If only you didn't cover yourself so much... You don't even need all the work on your hair or make up as long as you have a good color."

Bella looked into the mirror and waves of shock washed across her face. She didn't seem able to believe that the beautiful image in the mirror was herself. She was beautiful, if only she realized. I wanted to tell her she was that she stupefied even me, a soulless vampire. The voice cackled at me but i ignored it and slipped my arms around the pale beauty's waist.

"I'm glad you like it. I was hoping you might." The dress fit her curves perfectly, i noted as i held her.

"You are... really good at this kind of stuff." She faltered slightly, i could feel her unease. I stepped back quickly, gaining my senses once more. What had i been thinking? Bella continued on in her odd self consciousness. "I'm kind of a failure as a girl...i mean, i don't know how to dress or anything... i generally just grab a t-shirt or something."

"I noticed." i said rolling my eyes. Much better, i was in control... lets keep it this way. Bella was looking into the mirror when i remembered again the duties of a hostess, so i dragged her away interrogating her about lunches.

"Is a sandwich alright?" i asked a trifle unsure.

"Yeah thats fine." she assured me. Eager to get away from her for a moment and further gather myself i hurried to the kitchen. Laying my hands on the cool black marble of the counter top i bowed my head and took several steadying breaths. "How could i lose control like that? And at a time when losing it would be most dire... idiot!" i knocked my head against the table, trying to get the message through my seemingly all too thick skull. Alright, no matter, no harm no foul. I got out some sandwich materials from the fridge and made one without thinking about it. When the masterpiece of absentminded-ness was complete i held it up and sniffed it cautiously. "Bleh." my mind shuddered, how could humans eat such disgusting things? I shrugged it off, diff strokes diff folks i supposed, grabbed two glasses of water and raced up the stairs, hoping i hadn't taken too long.

"Here you go!" i said as i passed the tray to her, snatching a glass of water for myself. I looked at the water despairingly. This could never quench my thirst, nor moisten the dry cracking feeling that burned my throat, but it was better than nothing i supposed.

"Aren't you hungry?" Bella asked, curious due to the absence of another sandwich. She took a light sip of water, lips pouting gently.

"No, i don't eat lunch." i shook my head fiercely. Stop it! This is no time for day dreaming!

"Why not?", she asked taking a small bite of her sandwich. Curious the way her lips moved when she chewed...No, wait, she asked me a question, focus!

"I'm not hungry then." Idiot me answered. Clever Alice, woo her with your intelligence and wit. I stumbled on, "I generally don't have to eat much. I have a small appetite."

"So you Don't eat lunch?"

"Generally not. Its not n important meal to me." I smiled gratefully, it seems my half brain answer was good enough for Bella. Its not like it was a lie exactly, lunch wasn't important to me. I preferred late night dinners, large ones that would keep me satisfied for at least a couple of days. I told Bella that partial truth, leaving out the couple of days part, but giving at least some sort of explanation.

"So, you're new to forks right? Where were you living before here? Why'd you move?", i asked, genuinely curious. Was she running from something like we were?

"Oh, well technically i guess i didn't move... i just moved in with my dad for a little while. I used to live with my mom in sunny Phoenix, but she got remarried, and well... i kinda wanted to let her have her fun you know? The guy she got married to is a baseball player so hes always moving around, i was keeping her away from him so i decided to go. Now I'm here in wet and cloudy forks, where the sunshine is little and tan skin is a rarity." Bella said, ending the sentence with an air of confidence. Ah, so she didn't like being pale very much...Because it made her different from her Phoenix friends? I shrugged, who knew? Her explanation didn't sound very suspicious, perhaps she was just letting her mother spend time with her new husband.

"What about you? You've been in Forks for a while?", she asked. Looking at that innocently curious face i gave in, what could it hurt to tell her a few things?

"Our family has been in Forks for a little while. Carlisle moved here because he loves camping and he knew that Forks had a lot of good areas around it. I myself enjoy it because of the lack of sun. I...get burnt really easily you see, super fair skin and all, so Forks works out well for me." True enough, i decided. I didn't burn in the sun but I did shine and sparkle like a million little perfectly cut diamonds.

I noticed Bella had finished with her food and I quickly picked it up and bussed it away. On the way back from the kitchen I spotted Emmet's huge TV. Maybe a movie was in order for tonights events? I patted myself on the back climbing up the stairs, very good idea I thought; While distracted by a movie it would be very hard to lose control. As i entered my room i paused at the doorway to gaze at Bella. Bella was sitting on the floor facing away from the door, and the little light that remained unsnatched from the night or gray clouds shone on her long brown hair. I sighed quietly and leaned on the doorway, she certainly was pretty. Arg, its a good thing we are going to watch a movie, i thought as i snapped back to my senses, maybe this sleepover wasn't such a good idea after all...

"Do you want to watch a movie?" I asked. Bella jumped in surprise, she hadn't noticed me at all. Human senses really have gone to the dogs.

"You're done?" she asked, disbelief coloring her tone.

Oops, had i cleaned up too fast? "I'm pretty quick at cleaning." I said grinning; what an understatement. "So a movie?" I was eager to get the movie playing, this was just too dangerous.

She nodded obligingly. "Um...sure. What movie?" I rambled off a list of a few of my favorite movies; things like Saw, The Others, The Mummy, various Alien movies, The Shining, The Skeleton-key etc. rolled off my tongue as I babbled on. I did so much enjoy scary movies, especially the ones with monsters in them. Movies about vampires were especially humorous to me as I reveled in the image that humans created to depict my kind. Thinking back it was a bad idea to have listed off movies like Saw (which Bella happened to pick), it had plenty of blood spilling in it, and at that moment i wasn't quite sure of my control levels on either aspect, be it love or the need to feed. But at the time i was just surprised that Bella had chose such a gory and disturbing film, i hadn't nailed her down as the type to have any sort of knowledge on scary movies, nor to have a strong stomach.

I led Bella to Emmet's sacred video game playing television and waited for the reaction I knew would come.

"Wow, this is really nice!" Bingo. She looked all over the room, childish joy at seeing something so large and impressive glowing in her eyes.

"Its Emmet's." I explained while putting in the DVD. "He has a thing for movies. Well, movies and video games really. This is generally his video game television. I tend to use the smaller one upstairs, but there is good surround sound on this one...Better for scary movies."

Bella nodded and sat down on the large black couch. Unable to resist the urge to be near her i flopped down next to her and clicked the play button. Bella sat up attentively and watched the screen, she seemed about ready to take notes on the movie. When someone was killed she looked shocked and flinched at the blood splattering the screen, as though unprepared for such a sight. The murderer went on a killing spree soon after that, and I found myself unable to restrict the giggles tat bubbled up from within me. This murderer certainly had style, I mused to myself as one man was ripped apart limb from limb. Oddly enough I wasn't having any thirst problems, this probably could be due to the fact that the blood was so obviously fake and even if it was real I was unable to smell it. The smell of blood was what really got to me, but luckily there was no type of speaker that emitted sounds and smells. Bella squeaked and trembled, perhaps she didn't truly like scary movies after all.

"You okay?" i asked, a little bit worried and a little bit amused. It was cute that she was scared of a foolish movie such as this.

Bella lied and nodded a yes, still trembling. Tsk girl I can tell when you lie, your face gives it all away. I let it go though and finished the movie, what good was starting something if you weren't going to finish it? I promised myself I'd pick the lie issue back up once the movie was done.

A few more screaming corpses later the movie did finish, and I made good on my promise.

"Do you get sick at the sight of blood?", I asked her quite bluntly, no point in dancing around the issue.

"Generally its more of the smell than the sight, but I don't like... watching it." The words seemed to be forced from her lips, a tad ashamed of her fear it would seem. But i hadn't missed that one part, "smell". Could she?...

"Smell? You can smell blood...you cant...no human can smell blood." I felt the numbness of shock seep into my veins, could humans really smell blood? Certainly not like my kind could...could they?

"Well...I can. It smells like rust... and it's bitter." Bella wrinkled her nose in disgust. Good, she couldn't sense it like i could, for any vampire would know that blood is not bitter at all, but as sweet as sweet can be. Bella abruptly turned a few shades greener so I asked her if she was alright. Yeah, scary movies aren't such a great idea, at least the gory ones. Bella nodded, lieing to me again, but this time i decided to call her out on it.

I pulled Bella into my arms, saying through body language "you liar". I hadn't expected her to be so warm or soft... Her hair smelled like strawberries and sweat, an odd yet pleasant combination. I lost myself in the moment, so when Bella suddenly sat up I jumped a little bit.

"I feel better. How'd you do that?", a blinking semi-awake Bella asked me.

I didn't understand what she meant. "Do what?"

"I was feeling sick talking about blood and then it passed. It was like..." -I interrupted her by Laughing. So thats what she was thinking about.

"I didn't do anything, that was just time working its magic. I Don't have any special healing powers. Normally its my brother who is the family miracle worker. He is good at making people feel better, not me."

Bella's face twisted in confusion. "Emmet is good at making people feel good?"

"No not Emmet. Jasper." Ouch. Jasper hadn't thought of him in a while...

I distantly heard Bella ask "Jasper is the blond?" I'm sure i nodded, but I felt too numb to feel anything really. My heart seized, turning the long dead flesh to an ice crystal as hard as myself. Jasper, my love, my life, gone, taken from me most cruelly. Jasper whom i loved, jasper whom i hated, Jasper. I waited grimly for the waves of grief to pull me under, but they never came. Strange... I must be stronger than I thought. I realized I was once again getting lost in my thoughts so I turned to the mousy haired angle next to me and smiled, if only to reassure her i was still there.

"Well how about a funny movie?" I asked standing up. Yes, a funny movie sounded good. "To make things better you know? Get rid of some of those images from the last one. Waddya say?" i asked in my best sales pitch voice.

"Sure." Bella agreed whole heartedly it seemed, at least thats what her expression led me to to believe. I sifted through the DVD's, getting some of my excitement back as i thought of what we could watch to cheer up the mood.

"Ah, heres a good one!", I said pulling out The Emperors New Groove. Childish, no doubt, but childish funny movies could do nothing but help this situation.

I sat back down and played the movie, nervous of what she would think about it. As soon as the previews were finished though i found myself cracking up along side Bella, but I still glanced at her occasionally to make sure I wasn't being overly easy to please. No one wants one of those friends who laugh at everything.

The movie came to an end and i watched Bella giggle out the last vestiges of her laughter. We ordered pizza (Bella's favorite kind, which surprised her greatly to my amusement) and then thought about what next movie to watch.

"What is your favorite movie of all time?" I asked.

"Um…" Bella blushed and looked down abashed.

"Come on." I smiled encouragingly. "Tell me."

"Um…Romeo and Juliet…" Bella mumbled quietly.

"I love that play!" I exclaimed with great excitement. That was the honest truth, i loved Shakespearean plays. The old time feeling you got from them was something i relished. "One of my favorites! Would you rather see the 1996 version or the 1954 version? I have both."

"You have the 1954 version?" Bella asked, nearly drooling. "I only have the new one. I couldn't find any others in the stores."

I thought about the endless list of movie stores i had barged into to find this movie and smiled silently to myself. It was a rare one, and the buffoon who was selling it didn't recognize its true worth, so i had gotten some good hours of shopping done and saved some cash. "Oh," I giggled. "You just need to know where to look."

I put the DVD in and sat back down next to Bella. Half way through the Capulet's and the Montague's heated arguments Bella leaned into me. I froze, terrified of what the suddenness of that simple motion would do to the predator within me. I got lucky, it seemed to be sleeping. I looked over at Bella and noticed, of course, she had clear passed out on my shoulder, tuckered out for the evening. Humans needed sleep, i reminded myself, something good to remember.

Th movie ended soon enough and Bella was still fast asleep on my shoulder. I shifted into what i hoped would be a more comfortable position for her and looked at the beautiful thing that was slumbering on me. She was so pretty...those lips, those full eyelashes fluttering lightly in her sleep, it was impossible not to be attracted to this wondrous girl... Slowly i leaned in, intending at first to get a closer look at her luscious skin, but instead finding myself being drawn to her lips. My fingers brushed against them lightly, causing me to shiver, so so soft... I leaned in more, not bothering to fight the magnetic pull of my lips to hers, she was so close it was dizzying. Abruptly i pulled up as she mumbled something in her sleep

"No.." she murmured and gasped, flipping over and turning her face away from me. I sighed, this battle was lost, as was the war. There was no point in me trying to fight what was clearly meant to be much longer. This was strange, different, but resisting seems to have no affect. I must talk to her about it tommarrow. Maybe not tommarrow... but... soon. I have to talk to her about it soon.

Scooping the fragile Bella into my arms i carried her up the stairs and tucked her into my bed, she wouldn't want to wake up to a couch bed. I myself sat in the corner of the room, watching her chest rise and fall with the deep breathing of sleep. Soon I would have to tell her, but we could wait a little longer yet.

* * *

**A/N numero DOS!**

Cahira: ok, yes, HUGE CHAPTER. whats the catch you say to having such a huge chapter? well im afraid another update will take a little while, as I have just gotten out of surgery and cannot type very well with both hands, hell can't even handwirte as i am a right handed persona while the right shoulder is the thing that got operated on. So i apoligize but the next update may take a while, i'll still be writing, but with only one hand mainly '''

getting back to the fanfiction, what do you guys think? I FINALLY BEAT LAURA WITH THE LENGTH MWUAHAHAHA but is it good sounding? im not really sure how to work this collab wirting thing when it comes to conversations still, definatly working on it!

constructive critisism is very very VERY much appreciated!

oh and review pleaaassee :)

Laura: Yay! A lovely long chapter. I love it. It is like nanowrimo all over again, except this time I wasn't intending for the final product to be so long. Althouuuuuuuuuuuuuuuugh... I did less than half of the work, so that may be why I don't think it was so long whenI was writing it.

Thank you for reading such a long chapter.


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